ST. CROIX — Estate Williams Delight residents who live on the private side of the neighborhood united Monday in protest of the condition of 1st Avenue, a dirt road spanning three blocks filled with crater-sized potholes that is slated to be paved as part of a federally-funded project following a lengthy review process expected to enter the public comment phase next month.
The residents voiced frustration with the lack of government response and action as they emphasized the need for the road to be prioritized.
“It’s a shame that people be living like this,” George Ramos, a Williams Delight resident, said. “You be paying taxes and all these things, and if you don’t pay your taxes, they take away your property, and they want people to drive in this road.”
Ramos said the government has graded the road throughout the years, adding that the temporary solution does not last due to stormwater runoff.
“You need to pave it so that the water won’t mess it up because when it rains hard, all the water from the hill comes down all this way,” he said.
Ramos was among a group of nine residents gathered on 1st Avenue to voice their concerns, questioning when the government would begin road construction.
“It’s been too long, way too long, and we are asking the government to do something about the road so we could drive to our property safely, to our home safely,” Lunmus Baptist, who must maneuver 1st Avenue to reach his home, said.
Since flowing rainwater has carved out sections of the road, members of the community have staged three piles of rocks along the road to fill in the potholes themselves. It would, however, only provide them temporary relief.
“We, as property owners, do our best to get it to the point where we can drive safely,” Baptist said. “But with all the rain, it’s always a mess. So, we need the government to come out, help us out, get our road fixed so we could drive to our property safely.”
Maudry Benjamin, Williams Delight Homeowner’s Association secretary, said the Association has been trying to reach out to government officials for the past 16 years to advocate for roadwork in the neighborhood. She said numerous letters have been written, but nobody has ever responded.
“We have been waiting for many years to see that 1st Avenue road fixed, and it seems like nobody’s hearing, nobody’s listening, nobody cares,” she said.
The road is part of a Virgin Islands Department of Public Works project slated to receive funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
“There are areas of Williams Delight that are to be repaired with FEMA funds based on the damage assessments that were done resulting from the storms of 2017,” Public Works Commissioner Derek Gabriel said. “I don’t think that the FEMA project is going to address all the roads, but it should address a substantial amount, including 1st Avenue.”
Gabriel said FEMA’s review process that was expected to take one year to 18 months started in late 2023, estimating it should conclude by next summer.
“It’s a comprehensive project that we have planned, and it does include significant drainage,” the commissioner said, adding the project should prevent flooding in the area. “It’s just unfortunate that it is taking so long.”
FEMA has a 19-step process the territory must work through before the federally funded projects can begin, according to Laurissa Ellis, Office of Disaster Recovery communications manager.
“There can be additional requests for information or additional processes and steps that have to be reviewed and approved by FEMA and the territory,” she said. “And there were some clarifications on the scope as well, and additional clarification was needed on both parts between DPW and FEMA.”
The project is undergoing an environmental and historic preservation review that is expected to enter a 30-day public comment phase next month, Ellis said. After completion of the EHP review, she said the project goes back to FEMA for final review before it would be ready for solicitation.
Yvette Ali advocated on behalf of her elderly mother, who lives in Williams Delight.
“I’m here on her behalf because she has to drive over this road every day, and it’s getting more and more difficult for her to do so,” she said.
Ali said the residents would like temporary work to be completed on the road until it can be properly paved.
“We can’t wait until next summer,” she said. “We just want something to be done.”
Gabriel was open to the request.
“We’ll see what we could do,” he said.
